T-Talk

Monday

Jun 16, 2008 at 12:01 AM

Organic garden adviceBarbara Ellis knows how your garden grows, or more specifically, how it should. She’s sharing her wisdom in “The Veggie Gardener’s Answer Book.” In this compact volume, Ellis promises an “answer to every question you’ll ever ask” unless, perhaps, your question involves how often to apply chemical fertilizer or something of that sort. This book pledges its advice is 100 percent organic.“The Veggie Gardener’s Answer Book” is intended as a reference in which you can look up the issues that are troubling you. Ellis covers the how-tos of creating and maintaining a vegetable garden and also provides information about specific crops.The book comes from Storey Publishing and sells for $14.95.Outdoor appliancesWe heard how rude you were at your last outdoor party. Not that we’re in the gossip business, but our sources tell us that every time the conversation got juicy, you kept interrupting your guests to go inside and grab drinks, food or ice. Perhaps you need outdoor appliances.The Outdoor Series by Marvel is a line of undercounter and free-standing refrigeration products that includes clear-ice machines, refrigerators, beverage and wine refrigerators, refrigerated drawers, beer dispensers, and its latest addition, a 54-bottle wine cellar.Models come with fully wrapped stainless-steel doors and are UL-Listed as suitable for outdoor environments and weather. Appliances are front-vented and can be installed with an outdoor grill center or made portable with casters.Available on the wine cellar and refrigerated drawer is an alarm that alerts owners to temperature changes, power failures and open doors.Prices range from $2,000 to $3,500. Details at lifeluxurymarvel.com.Choosing a RealtorWhen your brother, neighbor and best friend are all real estate agents, how do you choose one to represent you without hurting the others’ feelings? How about choosing the one with the best answers to the following questions, courtesy of Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing, an organization dedicated to improving housing-industry practices.How long have you worked in real estate, and how long have you been licensed?Are you a Realtor? What professional designations do you have, and what special skills do they certify?Do you work alone, or do you have an assistant or support staff? How often will we be in touch during the searching and buying process? Can I look at homes without you?What makes you stand out among your peers, and do you have references from clients?Will you act as a buyer-broker, or do you represent the seller?How will you get paid, and may I have that in writing?How many other buyers are you representing?On the WebWho starts shopping for a home by going out to see homes? That was the process in the pre-Internet days. These days, the first step is narrowing your search online and then heading out.Trulia.com is a free real estate search engine where you can find homes for sale, local real-estate information and helpful resources.Searches can be tailored by price range, home type and number of bedrooms and baths. Results display area trends and compare your home to recently-sold or newly added homes in the market. Price trends are displayed by county, city, ZIP code and neighborhood.Other special tools include Heat Maps, color-coded maps that show where neighborhood prices are high, average or low, and real-estate guides that help you analyze your findings.